Texas Border Business –
This September, South Texas College President, Dr. Shirley A. Reed was awarded the prestigious Harold W. McGraw, Jr. Prize in Education for her work with South Texas College. The 2013 McGraw Prize recognizes individuals who have made “significant strides in the fight to make a college education an achievable dream for the next generation” and includes a $50,000 prize.
The McGraw Prize in Education annually recognizes outstanding individuals who have dedicated themselves to education innovation. The Prize was established in 1988 to honor the late Harold W. McGraw, Jr.’s lifelong commitment to education and to mark the Corporation’s 100th anniversary.
Former Prize recipients include leaders in community-based education such as Harlem Children’s Zone Founder Geoffrey Canada; business leaders, including retired Chairman and CEO of Lockheed Martin Corporation Norman Augustine; classroom teachers like Reynauld Smith of Washington, D.C.; and other innovators, including Teach for America Founder Wendy Kopp.
A distinguished, independent board of judges chooses honorees from the education community. This year’s winners also included KIPP Charter Schools Founders Mike Feinberg and Dave Levin and Deborah Bial, the founder and president of The Posse Foundation.
Dr. Reed and the other awardees were recognized on September 26 during a gala awards ceremony held in the New York Public Library.
“The Prize honors those who have earned the moniker of education innovators,” said Harold McGraw III, the chairman, president and chief executive officer of McGraw Hill Financial. “This year’s recipients embody extraordinary achievement in American higher education. These leaders have devoted themselves to helping the next generation to gain access to college, to persist in their studies and to emerge with college degrees.” TBB
